Santa Fe
by ThrowDownTheKey
Summary: Collins opens a restaurant called Angel's, and Roger and Mimi go there. If you read Musetta's Waltz first, this fic will make more sense :) post-rent
1. Santa Fe

**I wrote this with the help of my amazing/fabulous friend Malissa! Luvvies to all my readers, please review darlings.**

Santa Fe

"Is it hot there?"

I poked my head around the corner, Roger was searching through his closet with a puzzled look on his face. "I don't know!" I laughed. "You're the one that used to live there!"

"Arrg…" he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me, tousling my hair. "You're so damn cute. What are you bringing?"

"Fishnets. Do you think there are clubs there?" I asked, putting my hand on my hip.

"Well duh," he said, "are there men there?"

I laughed. We had sold the majority of our stuff, so all we had left to pack up were our clothes. I missed my table, and my vintage fabric chairs, but it's not like we could bring them with us. Roger's car's trunk isn't nearly that big.

I looked over at the big window on the side of the apartment, then I stepped out onto the fire escape. Man, I was going to miss this place. It was where I met Roger, and where me and Angel had hung out. Some of her favorite boutiques and shops were just down the street. I glanced over at Roger. God, I loved him. I was doing this for him, moving to Santa Fe was a dream of his. And now that Collins had a place down there, it would be just like home. Except without the painful memories. There was too much in Alphabet City that hurt. Especially for Roger, he needed to escape the sharp pains that came along with April's memories. That's why Collins left. He couldn't do it anymore. He couldn't walk past the corner where Angel used to drum without collapsing with tears.

So we had to leave. There was too much here, we needed to start over. Millions of thoughts ran through my head as we approached the old pawn shop. Roger wasn't selling his guitar this time, I had saved tips from work, and then there was always the furniture money. The cold, metal bars that lined the shop's windows almost resembled a prison cell. The clunky, outdated car, with the remnants of what might have once been pretty blue paint, sat next to the shop. Roger went in, and came out with the keys. As we drove past the city, I said my last goodbyes. Something told me I would never be coming back.

We pulled up to Collins' restaurant. It was so Angel. Painted an almost tacky, but not quite pink, with gold glitter lining the window panes, it screamed Angel. In fact, the place was called Angel's. I heard Roger mutter under his breath, "Oh god. It's like a drag palace."

I rolled my eyes and we walked, hand in hand, into the restaurant. The walls were a soft baby blue, and the bar stools had zebra printed seats. Vintage couches mixed with bohemian looking tables filled the space. The blackboard behind the bar had one simple message on it. "No Day But Today," it read in bold red letters. "Try our specials!"

A tip jar sat on the bar, labeled, "Actual reality, act up, fight AIDS." We walked up to the bar, and the barista came up to meet us. She was shaking up what looked like a mojito. She was fair skinned, with sparkling blue eyes framed with long, dark lashes. A mass of blonde hair sat on her head in a messy bun that was threatening the laws of gravity. Her name tag read MALISSA with a small, pink heart dotting the I.

"Hi, can I get you guys something to drink?" she said, flashing Roger a bright smile.

I linked my arm in Roger's, to let her know he was taken. "Umm, no. We're looking for Collins," I said.

"He actually just went home. But he'll be back within the next hour or so. Are you guys his friends?" she asked.

"Yeah," Roger said. "I'm Roger Davis, and this is my girlfriend Mimi Marquez."

Malissa's eyes lit up, and she smiled. "Yeah, he's expecting you guys. Let me get you something, on the house," she winked.

"An old fashioned for me, and…" I gestured to Roger.

He shrugged, "Just give me the special."

"Stoli, okay?" the barista asked.

Roger laughed, it was so like Collins to make his favorite drink the special. "Yeah," he nodded eagerly.

The barista returned with our drinks, and looked at her watch. Her eyes widened, "I'm almost late for my second job!"

"Where do you work besides here?" I asked, sipping my drink.

"Oh, just this club down the street. It's called Alley Cats," Malissa blushed.

"Is it a stip club?" I asked, a little too eagerly.

"Umm, yeah," Malissa said cautiously. "But I don't dance there, I'm more of a bartender."

"Are you hiring?" I asked, again a little too eagerly. "I danced at a club back in New York."

"Kind of, Destiny quit last night. I guess you could come in and ask my manager," Malissa said gently.

"Great!" I said, stirring the little straw in my glass. Roger put his arm around me, as if to say he approved.

Then I felt a hand on my shoulder, so I turned around. There stood Collins, who hadn't aged a day since he left. "Hey guys," his deep voice bellowed.

"Collins, man!" Roger got up from his seat and embraced the taller man. "The place looks great! Ang-" Roger caught himself, "she would have loved it." Roger knew better than to say Angel's name, even though it had been almost a year, it was still a really touchy subject.

"Thanks Davis," Collins said. Then he looked toward Malissa, who was cleaning out a champagne glass. "I see you met my favorite barista.

"Yeah," I said. "I'm going to go try to get a job down at her club."

Collins smiled. This was the first time he had seen his friends since he left to open up Angel's. Seeing Mimi was hard, because it used to be that Mimi and Angel were always together. So seeing Mimi without Angel on her arm was painful. But life went on, even if time passed slow. And maybe Mimi and Roger staying at his place would help with the haunting dreams of his lover. So even though it hurt to see them again, in the end there really was only us.

**Please review. Should I continue the story? **


	2. Mark

SPEAK

"Hey Mark, it's Roger. Mimi and I –"

"Roger?" Mark picked up the phone.

"Hey man, how's Buzzline?" Roger asked.

Mark grimaced at the thought of his job, the place he sold his soul to in order to pay the rent. "It's, ummm, fine. And Santa Fe?" Mark asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Good, good. We moved into Collins' place last night, and Mimi got a job dancing at a club," Roger said.

"Dancing? Wow, that's good for-"

"No, Mark. Exotic dancing," Roger corrected with a sigh.

"Oh, well that's great too," Mark added, a hint of disappointment sprinkled over his voice. Mimi's dream was to get out of the smoky clubs and actually dance, like on a stage or for a company. But being a stripper didn't pay too terribly, and because Roger was currently out of work, the couple needed the money.

"Yeah, well. Just wanted to see how you were doing, I've got to go," Roger said, his voice distracted.

"Okay, just… Just don't forget to call, Roger. I miss you guys. I'm alone over here," Mark said.

"But, Maureen, Joanne?"

"They're never here. And when they are, it's not the same without you guys," Mark remarked.

"I'll call," Roger promised. And with that, he hung up the phone.

Mark was left alone in the empty loft. He gazed at the receiver for a minute, wishing for the sound of his best friend's voice to return once more. But it didn't.

He sat down on the couch, and started thinking. He wanted to get out of this apartment, but he knew he never could. The reason he could never leave, was the same reason Collins, Roger, and Mimi had to. The memories. The memories of Angel twirling across the floor were too much for Collins to handle. The thoughts of April lying dead, her wrists split open, in the bathtub made Roger hesitate each time he walked into that bathroom. But Mark didn't stay because of those memories, it was the happy ones that tied him to the ground. Memories of the good old days, when Roger would come home late from a show, and Mark would make coffee so the two could stay up late just talking. The days when Collins, Mark, Roger, Maureen, and even Benny, would pass around a joint, sharing the slight high with each other.

He remembered the day after he had met Angel, and how everyone always seemed happier after that. How she could make anyone smile. He remembered how Collins had pulled Mark off to the side of Maureen's performance space right before the show, and the conversation they'd had.

_"__What do you think of Angel?" Collins had asked him._

_ "__She's great. Funny, nice, seems really selfless," Mark had answered._

_ "__Yeah, I think I'm in love with her," Collins replied._

_ "__But," Mark protested, "You've only known her like, a day!"_

_Collins laughed and patted Mark on the back saying, "And you've never known true love, my friend." Then Collins walked back to where Angel and Mimi were standing together, and hugged Angel from behind. Angel had smiled and had immediately turned around so she could kiss him._

Mark smiled lightly at the memory. He could recall so vividly the night out that had followed, and the dinner the friends had shared at the Life Café. He remembered New Years, and going back to the loft to find all of their stuff gone. He remembered Mimi and Roger, who either seemed to be cuddling or fighting, and Maureen and Joanne who weren't much better. Collins and Angel's sweet kisses, Roger's repetitive guitar chords ringing through the loft, or Maureen sinking her teeth with a crunch into a potato chip. Mark had filmed them all, the glory days. And that's why he could never leave the apartment, because once he did, he would know that those days were over, and he will have lost all the memories. Well, not lost them, he would always remember them. But he wouldn't be able to look at the couch and say to himself, "remember when Roger was high and thought it was a bear?" He wouldn't be able to go out on the fire escape and say, "remember when Roger and I lit eviction notices on fire, standing out here on Christmas Eve?" Once he moved, Mark would lose that ability. And Mark couldn't bear the thought for even a minute.

**Sorry, that was a short chapter. I'm still not sure whether I should continue this on, I've never really written a chapter type thing, most of my stories are one shots. But let me know what you think, and whether you want me to continue on. Any ideas or suggestions on what you think should happen to our little bohemian family? **


	3. Promise Me

Collins was fine. Emotionally, physically, he was fine. It had been almost two years since Angel had died, and he was almost recovered. I mean, if the love of your life dies you're never going to be completely recovered. But the restaurant was going well, and bringing a nice profit. He was glad to have Roger and Mimi move in, because Collins was getting lonely in his apartment. But one day, all of that changed, and he realized he wasn't even close to "almost recovered."

"Will you go out with me?"

Collins blinked in shock, "I'm sorry, what?"

Robert laughed, "I said would you go out with me?"

Robert was one of the restaurant's usual customers. Collins had to admit, he and Robert got along pretty well. He was also a philosophy Professor, and he taught at the nearby college. He and Collins had had some long chats that varied from milkshake flavors to Socrates.

Collins sighed, Robert was cute, and Collins had noticed. But he hadn't been on a date since… well, Angel.

_"__Collins honey?" Angel managed to say through labored breaths._

_Collins looked up from the magazine he was reading and grabbed her hand. "What is it?"_

_Angel smiled a little, "I want you to promise me something."_

_Collins hesitated, then replied, "Anything."_

_ "__I want you to move on. Don't become one of those widowed hermits that stays inside the house all day, then goes to the graveyard for five hours on Sunday. I want you to date, fall in love-"_

_ "__Never! Angel, I'll never be able to love anyone else. I can't hold someone else's hand after I've held yours, or kiss someone where I've kissed you. Angel, you're my soul mate. I can't."_

_ "__Promise me," she said softly._

_ "__Angel, I… I can't," Collins said. He wanted to give Angel everything she wanted, but he couldn't make this promise. If he did, he knew he'd have to break it. He would never love anyone but her._

_ "__Please Collins. Thomas, please."_

_Collins sighed. He always hated his first name, but when she said it, she could make him do anything. "I… I promise."_

"Sure, how about tomorrow night?" Collins replied.

"Great! Like, 8?" Robert suggested, beaming.

Collins hesitated, Angel always had gone out at eight.

_ "__Seven o'clock is for children, nine is for college kids," Angel said. "So we go at eight, not an hour before, not an hour after."_

But Collins shook the thought from his head, and nodded to Robert, confirming the date time. This was going to be interesting.

**I hope you liked this chapter! I think I'm going to try and update this every other day, and keep the multiple plots going. This Collins date thing will be fun to write, and I think I'll give Mark some more pages! Let me know what you think!**


	4. To Be With Her

**Hi! Next chapter is up, and I think I like where it took the story line. More to come!**

"Collins?" Roger heard the front door shut, so he cautiously crawled out of bed, careful not to wake Mimi. "Man, are you okay?" Roger asked, even though the answer was obvious. Collins was leaning against the front door, and he looked mad. "Collins?" Roger asked again, walking towards the anarchist.

"No! I cheated on her! I CHEATED! I CHEATED ON MY ANGEL!" Collins rammed his fist into the wall, leaving a nice dent. "My Angel," Collins voice softened, tears spilling from his eyes. "Angel…"

Roger ran to his friend, wrapping his arms around the taller man. "It's okay, shhh… it's okay. Come sit with me… come on buddy." Roger led Collins to the couch, sitting down next to him.

"I cheated on her."

"No. You didn't cheat on her Collins, you didn-"

"I DID!" Collins yelled. "WE SAID WE'D NEVER CHEAT ON EACH OTHER! I LOVE HER! HOW COULD I?!" Collins screamed at himself. Then he broke down, crying softly into his hands.

Roger placed his hands on Collins' shoulders, comforting him. "You didn't cheat on Angel, Collins. She's dead. She left you, she-"

"She didn't leave me," Collins protested with a sob. "She didn't want to. It's not like April, Roger. April left you. It's okay for you to be with someone else. Angel wasn't supposed to leave me, she didn't want to. We were soulmates, Davis."

Roger was hurt, Collins' words about April stung. But he decided to not pick a fight, because Collins was emotionally weak. "What happened?" he asked gently.

Collins looked up at the rocker, "It started out fine. We talked, laughed, food was great. But when he started getting more flirtatious, and tried to hold my hand, I got this sinking feeling in my stomach. And I started seeing signs. Like, some kid just happened to walk in wearing a red jacket and blue jeans. There was a pickle tub lying in the corner holding dishes. I even saw a drag queen, Roger. I felt like she was trying to tell me something. And then I realized what I was feeling in my stomach wasn't indigestion, it was guilt. And the last straw was when I saw that our waitress's nails were painted light blue. I just, left. And I couldn't control it, I cried on the subway."

Collins vented for hours on and on about how he felt, and eventually his loud sobs woke Mimi up. She just came and joined them on the couch, and was talking to Collins about how to make him not feel guilty.

Finally, Collins came to a conclusion, "I need to move back."

Roger and Mimi looked stunned. But, Collins was so happy in Santa Fe, wasn't he?

Collins continued, "I need to be with her. I need to visit her, to just talk to her. And even though the memories hurt, I miss not walking by her drumming corner, or seeing the alleyway where we first met. They're what keep me close to her."

Mimi understood. She missed her Tuesday afternoon chats with Angel, when she'd go to her grave and just talk. Mimi would tell her all the latest gossip, and vent about the annoying girls at work.

"I'm going back," Collins said. "New York is my home, however much I'd like to deny it, I can't.


	5. It's Nice to See You Again

**So... sorry this is a short chapter, but I promise you there will be longer ones! I hope you like where the plot went, I'm not sure I do, but oh well. :)**

"Yeah, so Collins is coming back to New York, could he move in with you?"

"That'd be great," Mark said, trying not to sound too eager. To be perfectly honest, he'd been awfully lonely living by himself.

"I'm going to take over his restaurant, and play my guitar during business hours. The place could use some music," Roger said. "How's Musetta?"

Mark sighed. He'd gone out on a few dates with a girl named Musetta, and he liked her a lot, but she wasn't ready for a committed relationship. It was like Maureen all over again. "Meh, it's fine."

Roger tried to muffle his laughter. For some odd reason, his unlucky-in-love best friend's misfortune was amusing to him. "I guess you have a type."

Mark forced a laugh, but the subject was anything but funny to him. The filmmaker longed for a healthy relationship, one that didn't end by confrontation. He also really wanted to get laid.

"Okay," Roger said, breaking the awkward silence. "I've got to go. Bye Mark," and with that, he clicked off the phone.

Collins was flying in tonight, which gave Mark the opportunity to get takeout from the Life Café. He already knew what to order for the anarchist, pasta with meatless balls.

"Pookey! Come one! It was just a wink!" Maureen protested.

Joanne was about to argue when she saw someone. "COLLINS!" she cried, waving her hand up in the air.

The anarchist heard his name and looked up. Maureen and Joanne were sitting at the bar with Mark, waving him over. "Hey you guys," he said. Maureen ran up to him and he swooped her up in a big bear hug. "Oh, I've missed you."

Joanne smiled when Collins sat next to her, ordering a Stoli. "We've missed you too," she said. "So, what's happening to Angel's?" she asked.

"Roger is taking it over, he's going to get together with his old band, they'll perform there too. And Mimi, well, she's got a job dancing at the club down the street," he answered.

"Poor Meems, I heard she had an audition for a hip hop company yesterday. I haven't heard anything back yet," Mark said.

"Well, let's not 'poor Meems' yet," Joanne said, "no news could be good news."

Collins nodded and sipped his drink. Then he saw her. Angel. Standing behind Mark, dressed in her Santa sweater. Collins always seemed to see her here. She walked up to him, and sat down on the stool next to him, taking his hand in hers. Collins used to hate the visions of her that would taunt him, but today he was happy to see her. "Hey," he whispered to her. He knew she wasn't really there, but she was listening to him from her cloud in the sky. "It's nice to see you again."

**Please review **


	6. What If?

**I know I've been updating a lot today, but honestly I just love where this is going! I'm kind of running low on one shot ideas, so if you have any certain CollinsxAngel fluffs you would like to see on paper, PM me, or just leave it in a review! **

"You can see it, in my eyes," Roger sang, belting out that last note for what seemed like eternity. The dinner crowd at Angel's exploded with applause, and Roger took a bow. Then he unplugged his amp, slung the guitar over his shoulder, and went back into the kitchen.

He'd only taken a few steps when he saw Mimi running up to him. She was carrying a piece of paper, and waving it in the air. "I GOT IN!" she yelled, flinging herself into Roger's arms. "I got in!" she pointed to the sheet of white paper in her hands. "Mimi Marquez is now Hip to the Hop's newest principal dancer! Oh, Roger!"

"That's amazing Mimi!" Roger laughed, twirling her in the air. "I'm so proud of you!"

"No more smoky clubs, no more one o'clock in the morning shifts, no more smelly old men! And goodbye to lap dances!" she paused, nuzzled Roger's nose, and said, "except for you, of course."

"I say we go out," Roger said. "We can call up the gang, tell them the news, and then you and me can have a romantic dinner. Here, after hours," he said, smiling goofily.

Mimi nodded, "That sounds perfect."

XOXO

"Well send Mimi my congratulations," Mark spoke into the phone. "I'll let the rest of the guys know, have a nice date."

"Oh we will, thanks man," Roger concluded, hanging up the phone.

Mark then proceeded to excitedly call Maureen, who told Joanne. "Collins!" Mark went into the anarchist's bedroom, who was sharing Mark's loft apartment. "Mimi got the job at the company," he said.

"That's fantastic!" Collins almost jumped off the bed he had been sitting on. "She did it! She really did it! Our Mimi, out in the world, accomplishing her dreams!" Then Collins ran out of his room, grabbing his leather jacket off the hook.

"Where are you going?" Mark asked when Collins opened the door.

"To tell Angel!" Collins shouted back, shutting the door behind him.

Mark smiled, he had a feeling Angel was the first person Mimi had told.

XOXO

"Musetta?"

Musetta was standing outside on the loft's fire escape, knocking on the window. It was raining, and she was in a light green rain jacket. Her dark brown hair was dripping wet, and her mascara was running.

Mark opened the window and let her in. "What are you doing here?" he asked, wrapping a red blanket around her shoulders.

"I need to tell you something," she said, sitting down on the couch. Mark sat next to her, and handed her a paper towel.

She wiped the rain drops from her face and carefully wiped the dripping mascara from under her eyes. "Thanks," she said. "Well, I have to tell you that… Oh gosh, this is harder than I thought."

Mark smiled a little, "What's going on? It's okay, you don't have to apologize, I know not everyone wants a committed relationship-"

"I came to say I love you," Musetta interrupted.

Mark looked stunned. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.

"I _do _want to be your girlfriend. If you still want to be mine," she said.

Now, something you have to understand about Mark, he's awkward. Very awkward. More often than not, he either says the wrong thing, or doesn't know what to say. But, in this rare moment, he did.

"I love you," he said. Then Mark pulled Musetta into a passionate kiss, letting it be the answer to her previous question. Maybe he was moving too fast, and maybe this wasn't true love. But what if it was?


End file.
